The Disposal of the Sewage of the Sanitary District of Chicago
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A K o]')0]i f o the DktHei Engbeer, U- Erifkofer- Office, Ghita^o — DATE DUE ISWS Aivoru, Duruit/K oc nvwov^xi THE B THE DISPOSAL OF THE 23 SEWAGE OF DISTRICT OF Loan c. 1 SANITARY 05041003 CHICAGO. ILLIHOlSSTi^T 1 ISWS Alvord, Burdick & Howson B THE DISPOSAL OF THE 23 SEWAGE OF THE Loan SANITARY DISTRICT OF c. I CHICAGO. 05041003 pEMCO / STATE OF ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION DIVISION OF THE STATE WATER SURVEY A. M. BUSWELL, Chief BULLETIN NO. 23 THE DISPOSAL OF THE SEWAGE OF THE SANITARY DISTRICT OF CHICAGO A Report to the District Engineer U. S. Engineer Office, Chicago BY ALVORD, BURDICK & HOWSON, Engineers [Printed by authority of the State of Illinois] URBANA, ILLINOIS CONTENTS Page Organization , iv. Letter of transmittal v. Letter of authorization vi. Part I. —Introduction, summary and conclusions 1 Part II. —Present disposal of sewage and deficiencies 12 Part III. —Population and growth 39 Part IV. —Amount and quality of sewage 48 Part V. —Standard of maximum pollution 64 Part VI. —Required degree of purification with various dilutions. 79 Part VII. —Protection of the water supply 85 Part VIII.—Savings effected by metering 101 Part IX. —Volume of sewage 114 Part X. -—Future intercepting sewer construction 119 Part XI. —Methods of sewage disposal and practicable efficiencies 128 Part XII. —Sewage disposal costs in other cities 145 Part XIII.—Required works for 10,000 cubic feet per second flow. 170 Part XIV.—Required works with 4,167 cubic feet per second flow. 174 Part XV. —Required works with miscellaneous flows 180 Part XVI.—Review of expenditures under various flows 185 PHILLIPS BROS.- PRINT. SPRINGFIELD. ILLINOIS. °2 1 9 7 (60418—1500) iii. ORGANIZATION. STATE OF ILLINOIS Len Small, Governor DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION A. M. Shelton, Director Board of Natural Resources and Conservation Advisers A. M. Shelton, Chairman William A. Noyes, Chemistry, Henry C. Cowles, Forestry. Secretary. William Trelease, Biology. John W. Alvord, Engineering. C. M. Thompson, Representing the Edson S. Bastin, Geology. President of the University of Illi- nois. Water Survey Division Committee A. M. Shelton William A. Noyes C. M. Thompson John W. Alvord WATER SURVEY DIVISION A. M. Buswt:ll, GTiief iv. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. State Water Survey Division ARTHUR M. BUSWELL, CHIEF Urbana, III. February 18, 1927. A. M. Shelton, Chairman, and Members of the Board of Natural Resources and Conservation Advisors: Gentlemen : Herewith I submit a report on the disposal of the sewage of the Sanitary District of Chicago and recommend that it be published as Bulletin No. 23 of the State Water Survey Division. This report was prepared by Alvord, Burdick & Howson, consult- ing engineers, of Chicago, by order of the Secretary of War pursuant to a resolution of the Committee on Rivers and Harbors of the House of Representatives, U. S., April 14th, 1924, and submitted to the Dis- trict Engineer, U. S. Engineer Office, Chicago. The printing of this report as a Water Survey Division Bulletin has been authorized by the Secretary of War. The letter granting this authorization is included herewith. The material presented in this manuscript contains so much data on the cause and remedy of the most serious stream pollution problem in the State that it seems highly advisable to make it available to the citizens of the State in published form. Respectfully submitted, A. M. BusWELL, Chief. V. LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION. War Department United States Engineer Office 537 South Dearborn Street Chicago, Illinois October 25, 1926. Dr. A. M. Buszvelly Chief, State Water Survey Division, Board of Natural Resources and Conservation, Urbana, Illinois, Dear vSir : Your request for permission for the State Department of Registration and Education to print the report of Alvord, Burdick & Howson, Engineers, to the U. S. District Engineer on the Disposal of the Sewage of the Sanitary District of Chicago, has been approved by the Chief of Engineers, with the condition that Chapter XII be also published, and that credijt and acknowledgment be made to the Chief of Engineers and the War Department, for whom and under whom the report was prepared. Yours very truly, Edward H. Schulz, Colonel, Corps of Engineers, District Engineer. vi. : ; PART I. INTRODUCTION, SUMMARY, AND CONCLUSIONS. District Engineer, U. S. Engineer Office, 337 S. Dearborn St., Chicago, 111. Dear Sir: Proceeding under our instructions of January 16, 1925, we have studied the problem of sewage disposal for the City of Chicago and vicinity, including more particularly that territory embraced within the Sanitary District of Chicago. Our study has been particularly directed to answers for the fol- lowing questions (a) Determination of a pollution standard for the Chicago Drain- age Canal for each of the following average diversions from Lake Michigan and 10,000 cubic feet per ; —2,000, 4,167, 6,000, 7,500, 8,500 second ; this standard to be the lowest that will prevent the occurrence of nuisance in the Des Plaines and the Illinois River, and will permit a thriving fish life therein. These diversions include the sewage flow of the Sanitary District and they therefore represent the dry weather flow of the Drainage Canal at Lockport, approximately. (b) Determination of the extent to which purification measures must be taken by the Sanitary District of Chicago for each of the flows specified above, in order that the pollution standard be maintained unim- paired. (c) Determination of the most feasible method of treating the surplus pollution, and, for each flow specified, the cost of the necessary works and the operating costs thereof. (d) The determination of the time that reasonably would be re- quired to build the necessary works and place them in operation for each of the flows specified. In the study of this matter the time at our disposal has not per- mitted original investigations. It has been possible only to view the present situation by inspection, and to study the large amount of data that has been accumulated by the Sanitary District of Chicago and . other agencies, bearing directly upon the answers to the above questions. : 2 We have further brought to bear upon the study of the problem the ex- perience of other cities regarding sewage disposal, insofar as informa- tion has been gained that would throw light upon the Chicago situation. Upon the pages which follow we have stated the local problem in some detail, and we have discussed the various phases of it insofar as we believe is required for a general understanding of the problem, and our answers to the questions previously stated. For the benefit of those already somewhat familiar with this problem we will first briefly state our summarized findings and conclusions. We will follow this statement by a more detailed consideration of the problem, and a further state- ment of the conditions and the reasons leading to the conclusions stated. SUMMARIZED CONCLUSIONS. 1st. Present Disposal: The diversion of the Chicago sewage from Lake Michigan, result- ing from the Drainage Canal and other causes, has effected a remark- able improvement in the death rate from water borne diseases. The sewage nuisance in the streams of the Chicago district has been re- duced^ to a large extent. This result has been accomplished, however, by transferring the bad conditions in Chicago to the Des Plaines and Illinois Rivers in which a crying nuisance has been created for more than one hundred miles ; and by diverting large amounts of water from the Great Lakes, over strenuous objections from property owners claiming a right to the water diverted. It is generally conceded that the present conditions should not be allowed to continue. The Sanitary District is already engaged upon remedial measures through which a large part of the sewage will be treated before discharge into the Drainage Canal. 2nd. Population and Growth: In planning works for sewage disposal, it is necessary to consider the future population of the locality. It is not financially practicable to make expenditures now for a problematical future. It is necessary, however, to determine the future populations approximately and to adopt works capable of construction in units that may be increased in capacity from time to time as occasion requires, without destroying previous expenditures. Thus each dollar expended will provide a link in a complete chain of sewage disposal works. We have examined the forecast of population as estimated by the Sanitary District of Chicago, and we believe it represents future proba- bilities as accurately as required for the above purpose. This estimate covering the population of the Sanitary District is as follows : 3 1920 census, 2,978,635 1930 3,710,000 1940 4,425,000 1950 5,140,000 1960 5,850,000 1970 6,580,000 In addition to the population in the Sanitary District, there is now (1925) a population of 180,000 in the northern Indiana cities bordering the lake and draining through the Calumet River. Under ordinary low flow conditions this drainage passes through the Sag Channel to the Main Drainage Channel and thus into the Illinois River. The Sanitary District includes about eighty-five per cent of the total population in the greater Chicago region which includes Cook, Kane, DuPage, Lake and Will Counties in Illinois, and Lake County in Indiana. The greater part of the outlying population has more or less effect upon the pollution of the lake and the nearby streams. 3rd. Amount and Character of Sewage: The present discharge of the sewers within the Sanitary District is about 800 miUion gallons per day. This is equivalent to a river 100 feet wide and five feet deep flowing one and one-half miles per hour.